


Let Me Adore You

by ShamelessPeterPan (PiscesDragon)



Category: Chinese Actor RPF
Genre: BJYX Prompt Fest (The Untamed RPF), Boys In Love, Established Relationship, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Mentions of Sexual Acts, They are both too sweet for words, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Yibo is a sap, this fic will give you diabetes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2020-08-10
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:54:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25813873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PiscesDragon/pseuds/ShamelessPeterPan
Summary: Yibo has a rare few days off, and there’s no better way to spend it than snuggling and spending quality time with his boyfriend. But he can’t stop dreaming of the future, because when a man realizes he wants to spend the rest of his life with somebody, he just wants to start it as soon as possible.Even though he knows Xiao Zhan may not be ready for a major commitment, Yibo has never been known for patience. But it doesn’t matter — he’s more than willing to wait as long as it takes to be able to keep such a perfect man forever.
Relationships: Wang Yi Bo/Xiao Zhan
Comments: 56
Kudos: 416
Collections: BJYX Prompt Fest 2020





	Let Me Adore You

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [bjyx_fest](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/bjyx_fest) collection. 



> I was hoping to have this done in time for Yibo's birthday, but at least I made it within the week!
> 
> **The Prompt:**
> 
> Wyb cuddling Xz on his lap. 
> 
> Can be a post-coital thing, a pre-coital thing, a regular-Sunday-afternoon-with-Xz-checking-his-schedule-and-YB-playing-his-game thing, a Xz-fell-asleep-during-a-horror-movie-and-scared-Wyb-is-using-him-as-a-cuddle-rabbit thing. DISH OUT THE FLUFF.  
> You know what? Take this in any direction. Porn welcomed. Heavy plot welcomed. Anything.
> 
> DNW: English names, top Xz (never minded a power bottom), unhappy ending
> 
> I have no idea what happened here. I think my brain was inspired by the engagement party rumors from late June, and it just took over. So to the person who requested this fic, I hope you enjoy and this fulfills your need for a fluffy fix!
> 
> A couple of other inspirations for this fic: [This twitter post](https://twitter.com/emma_scweams/status/1256040223814774784)
> 
> And this song was basically my soundtrack for this fic! - [Adore You by Harry Styles](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iquhBgM-Qv0)
> 
> Thanks to OverthinkingThis for the quick beta read!

It was three o’clock in the afternoon, and for once, Yibo had nowhere he needed to be. He could just relax, not worry about his normally hectic schedule, and continue with the activity which had kept him occupied for the last hour. Luckily, the couch in his hotel room was extremely comfortable.

He was laying in a half-sitting position, propped up by some extra cushions under his back, with one leg sprawled out against the back of the couch and the other bent with a foot resting on the floor. It should have been uncomfortable, if not for the heavy weight on his torso.

He ran his fingers slowly through the dark hair tickling his chin as Xiao Zhan dozed on his chest. Earlier they had played a game together on their phones, and as usual Yibo had carried the team while Xiao Zhan cursed and tried his best. Afterward, Yibo laid back to get comfortable and his boyfriend quickly settled into a cuddle. Yibo had started absentmindedly playing with the longer hair on top of his boyfriend’s head, occasionally massaging his scalp or scratching lightly with his nails, which only made Xiao Zhan melt against him even more. In no time, the older man had relaxed into a restful sleep.

It never ceased to amaze Yibo how a six foot tall, twenty-eight year old man could somehow become a complete uwu baby when positioned in a power snuggle.

This man. This man who took Yibo’s crazy schedule completely in stride, never complaining. This man who had hopped in a car last month and driven 15 hours with his assistant just to spend a few hours with him.

When Xiao Zhan’s flight information had been compromised and he’d had to cancel it, Yibo had tried to hide his disappointment. He knew Xiao Zhan had to fly under the radar — literally — and he’d insisted it was fine. Spending May 20th together had been a pipe dream anyway, with Yibo’s schedule so tight between responsibilities for his new drama, a guest appearance on a surfing show, and all the other regular work he had to do. So he’d thrown together a video, generic enough to post online but meant for Xiao Zhan, to show he was thinking about him even if they couldn’t be together.

But then Xiao Zhan showed up at the doorstep of his hotel room, weary from a day of driving but with a bright smile on his face, and Yibo had been so surprised and happy he’d nearly cried. And when Xiao Zhan learned Yibo would have a rare couple of days off the following month, he’d made sure to keep his schedule clear so he could be in Yunnan with him this weekend.

He did not deserve this man, but Yibo was so, so grateful for him.

It often felt like he spent his entire life running from one concert to modeling job to brand event to interview to show taping. When he was young, deciding to go into the entertainment business was a no-brainer. Who wouldn’t want to make money dancing for a living? And it was a hell of a paycheck if you were good at it — which he was.

But it was also very lonely.

It was hard to trust people in this industry. For a time, he’d had brothers he could rely on, who loved and supported him. Then they were ripped away from him.

Now he had his  _ TTXS _ brothers, who at this point were almost more of a family than his own parents. But he couldn’t help the undercurrent of fear that persisted in his brain, that nothing was ever permanent. He knew he could lose them, too. The recent abrupt departure of Tianhe-ge had only been a stark reminder of that fact.

One day, it could be him that was forced from the group.

Work, and the wealth it brought him, were great — but in his nearly 23 years he’d finally learned that while money was important, it wasn’t everything. It couldn’t keep you company, couldn’t hold you when you were overwhelmed and in tears. Yibo loved money, but it couldn’t love him back.

Not the way Xiao Zhan did.

This man who’d been thrown into his life, turned everything upside down, and made him want to change all of his priorities. This man, who was the most beautiful person he’d ever seen, inside and out, the only face he wanted to look at for the rest of his life.

Yibo ran his fingers gently over the slope of Xiao Zhan’s perfect cheekbone, barely a touch so as not to wake him. He traced his cute nose, the outline of his perfectly bowed lips, and pressed the pad of his finger against his favorite spot. He dearly loved that little mole beneath his lip. Yibo had basically made it into his boyfriend’s trademark, with the help of their CP fans and their zeal for finding the hints he threw them.

As he listened to Xiao Zhan’s soft snores, Yibo was warmed through, content. Xiao Zhan’s body was a furnace as usual where they were pressed chest to chest, with his arms wrapped around Yibo’s waist.

He wanted to keep him. Forever.

They’d talked about it, during the idyllic days of quarantine. When work was barely a blip on his schedule and all being done from their home. Xiao Zhan had cooked, Yibo kept the place tidy, and they’d each had a rare stretch of free time to enjoy.

_ *FOUR MONTHS AGO* _

“This makes me want to retire,” Xiao Zhan had said. He finished plating their dinner and carried it over to the table where Yibo was waiting. “Having so much time to work on my art and cook for you.”

“Speak for yourself,” Yibo joked. “All of your hobbies can be done inside!”

“Aww, my poor baby,” Xiao Zhan said with false sympathy. He reached over to ruffle Yibo’s messy hair. “You are not meant to be an inside puppy, are you?”

“No, not at all. I require sunlight and the wind in my hair,” Yibo said with a smile. “Preferably at high speeds. You can retire, and I’ll race motorcycles to support you.”

“You can’t race forever. Won’t you get too old?”

“Rossi is forty and still at the top,” Yibo replied with a smirk. “So I’ve got almost twenty years left, at least.”

“ _ Aish _ \- I never imagined I’d be spending my 40s cheering from the side of a racetrack, but there you go. Life is so unpredictable,” Xiao Zhan said with a smile.

It was the first time Yibo had ever heard him talk about them so far in the future, as if he expected them to still be together in old age.

“Is that what you see then?” he asked eagerly. “Us? In the future?”

Xiao Zhan laughed, his bright smile setting his face aglow. “Why? Are you planning to get rid of me?”

“Never,” Yibo insisted quickly. He waited, eager to see what other bits of information about their theoretical future his boyfriend might share.

Xiao Zhan’s expressive eyes turned speculative. “I don’t know. I guess we never know what the future holds, but it’s nice to imagine, right?”

It took barely a second for the words to leave his mouth, bypassing the critical thinking section of his brain completely, as Yibo blurted out, “Let’s get married.”

Xiao Zhan’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Yibo!” he exclaimed, laughing through his shock. “You’re only 22. How can you even think about something like that? Besides, you can’t marry me, anyway. It’s impossible.”

“Nothing is impossible if you want it enough,” Yibo argued. That belief had gotten him to Korea to train as a dancer, into a successful boy band, onto a show with geges he loved, multiple acting jobs, and most importantly, Xiao Zhan. His persistence had never let him down.

Xiao Zhan gazed at him with soft, fond eyes. “You can do anything you set your mind to, sweet puppy. But I highly doubt even  _ you _ can wish marriage equality into existence in China.”

Yibo sighed. “We could push for change. If we — if we came out, we’ve got enough power right now to change public perception. We could convince people to do what’s right!”

It was something he’d been stirring around in the back of his mind for a few months, occasionally testing his boyfriend’s receptiveness to the idea. So far, Xiao Zhan was not nearly as convinced of their ability to reshape the world as he was.

“ _ Aiyo _ , the idealism of youth! Yes, let’s get arrested for taking a public stand against the government. That’s a  _ great _ idea,” Xiao Zhan exclaimed, voice dripping with sarcasm.

“We wouldn’t get arrested…”

“Yibo, baby, I love you. But you’re being completely unrealistic.”

“So let’s get married somewhere else,” he suggested. “When the virus is gone and we can travel.”

“It doesn’t change the fact that it’s not even recognized in our own country. Besides, you’re young… I don’t even know why we’re talking about this,” Xiao Zhan said. His voice held a tone of suppressed aggravation now, and he was trying to cut off the conversation the way Yibo had learned meant he wanted to drop the subject before it turned into a fight.

Yibo just couldn’t let it go, though. “Why do you keep bringing up my age? Do you think I’m not old enough to know what I want?”

“No, of course not,” Xiao Zhan said. But he was avoiding Yibo’s eyes now. His chopsticks twirled idly in his noodles, as if he were deep in thought.

“Then what…?” Yibo trailed off, considering. If it wasn’t his age, and Xiao Zhan really saw them growing old together, what hang up could he have with a largely symbolic commitment?

Something about his boyfriend’s demeanor seemed self-conscious, like the uncertainty Yibo would see in him when he had to perform complicated choreography for a show, and a puzzle piece clicked into place.

“Wait. Do you think I’m going to find someone else??” he asked incredulously.

Xiao Zhan still wouldn’t meet his eyes. He waited a few moments, as if hoping Yibo would fill the silence, but the younger man waited him out and forced his honesty. Quietly, he looked down at his bowl and answered, “It’s possible. There are lots of other people you have more in common with…”

“I love  _ you, _ Xiao Zhan,” Yibo said. He couldn’t stand to see the doubt on his boyfriend's face. Before he could think about it, he was out of his seat and kneeling on the floor next to Xiao Zhan’s chair, his hands wrapping around the man’s thigh. “Nobody on the planet is more perfect for me than you.”

“Yibo,” he murmured, looking down at him with the softest expression.

The rest of their dinner that night had been left forgotten on the table.

* * *

Now, months later, as he stared fondly down at Xiao Zhan’s peaceful form, he knew his feelings were never going to change. This man was imprinted on his heart, his soul permanently attached to him so thoroughly he would never let go. And he didn’t want Xiao Zhan to get away.

He wanted to be by his side forever.

Xiao Zhan began to move slightly, one hand fisting Yibo’s t-shirt at his hip, his face pressing into his chest and letting out a soft moan. Once he fully woke up, he shifted just enough to look up at Yibo with beautiful deep brown eyes.

“Did I fall asleep?” His voice was sleep-rough and still always music to Yibo’s ears.

“About an hour ago, yeah.”

“And you’ve just been sitting here? Without your phone?” Xiao Zhan placed a hand on Yibo’s firm stomach and pushed himself up to a sitting position, looking him in the eye. “Have you just been staring at me the whole time?”

Yibo smirked at him. “It  _ is _ a hell of a nice view.”

“Ay, you,” Xiao Zhan groaned, but a smile pulled at his lips.

“You should feel honored,” Yibo said with a smile. “There’s nobody else I would ever let drool all over me.”

He pointed at the small wet spot on his chest.

Xiao Zhan’s ears turned pink in embarrassment. “It’s not my fault you’re so comfortable to lay on. These muscles are much softer than the bony chest I was used to.”

He poked at Yibo’s pecs playfully.

“I’m so happy all of my hard work can provide you with a better place to nap,” Yibo retorted sarcastically, his voice light.

“I do appreciate the pillows,” his boyfriend said as he grabbed Yibo’s chest firmly with both hands.

“Pervert.”

“Hey! I’m not allowed to enjoy the fruits of your labor?” The squeezing of his pecs had dissolved into Xiao Zhan’s hands exploring more fully, mapping over the entire front of Yibo’s body. “You know, when we first met and worked together, you could barely lift me up!”

Seriously, the man would never let him live down his failure at doing a bridal carry. Two years ago he’d been much scrawnier for a reason.

Period costumes were extremely unforgiving.

“And now I can throw you around,” Yibo said, giving him a heated look.

Xiao Zhan had always been physically stronger than he was — which was both a blessing (in the bedroom) and a curse to his competitive ego. When he’d needed to build muscle for his new role as a police officer, Yibo had thrown himself into a serious diet and exercise regimen, determined to see if he could beat Xiao Zhan’s bench press.

“We haven’t exactly tested that theory, have we?” asked Xiao Zhan.

Yibo snorted derisively. The competitive asshole he was dating couldn’t stand that Yibo’s physique might improve beyond his own, so he’d picked up his workout game, too. He’d also “borrowed” Yibo’s login info for his nutrition app, so he knew Xiao Zhan had been bookmarking recipes.

“I fucked you against the wall two weeks ago,” Yibo pointed out with a smirk. “I’d say that proves my ability.”

And he was damn proud of that achievement, thank you very much.

He planned to keep working out six days a week if it meant he could keep doing  _ that, _ because watching the way Xiao Zhan completely lost his shit when he got manhandled had been freaking  _ amazing. _

“Oh, you think so?” Xiao Zhan snarked playfully, one eyebrow raised in challenge. The hand that had been roaming over Yibo’s sternum veered off course and pinched a nipple, causing Yibo to gasp in surprise as a ripple of arousal slid through his belly.

There was a trace of dried drool under his lip and a vertical pink crease imprinted in Xiao Zhan’s cheek, probably from a fold in Yibo’s shirt while he napped. And yet he was still the most beautiful, adorable creature Yibo had ever seen.

He pushed himself up off the couch and into Xiao Zhan’s space, kissing him hard, then murmured against his lips, “Are you still tired?”

Xiao Zhan’s eyes fluttered open, the brown gone even darker from the fire sparking in their depths. “No, I’m good.”

Taking that as permission, Yibo gave him no warning as he leapt up from the couch and pulled Xiao Zhan into a standing position along with him. Before his boyfriend could protest, Yibo bent over and grabbed him around the legs, scooping him up and throwing him over his shoulder like a sack of rice.

_ “Wang Yibo!” _ Xiao Zhan squealed, half in protest as he tried not to laugh. He beat playfully at Yibo’s ass as he was carried from the room with his head hanging upside down.

Yibo barked a hoarse, gremlin laugh. “Who’s the weak one now, Zhan-ge?”

Once through the doorway to their room and dropped carefully onto the bed, Xiao Zhan promptly burst into a fit of giggles.

Yibo couldn’t help but grin at him. God, it was so nice to see him so happy. He wanted to be the one to always put that sweet smile on Xiao Zhan’s face. Yet just as he was about to follow him onto the bed, Yibo hesitated.

_ Was now a good time? Would there ever  _ **_be_ ** _ a perfect time? _

His brain waffled back and forth between the options in front of him. Guaranteed sex, if he’d just take his clothes off and go along with what Xiao Zhan was expecting, or he could do something potentially stupid with the possibility of ruining the rest of their evening.

“Yibo? What’s wrong?” Xiao Zhan’s smile fell, and Yibo realized he’d paused too long.

The impulsive part of his brain won.

He tore his gaze away and strode with purpose to the closet as Xiao Zhan called his name in question again, but he ignored it. Yibo rummaged in the back corner of the shelf until he found the small box he’d hidden away, palmed it in his hand to keep it from view for the moment, and returned to stand in front of his boyfriend, who sat eagerly at the end of the bed with a very confused expression. Yibo took a deep breath, debating his next move and realizing he hadn’t actually thought this part of the process through very well.

Xiao Zhan’s big brown eyes stared up at him. “BoBo?”

Overcome with feelings and the realization that he’d never have the words to express them, Yibo’s legs wobbled, and he dropped to his knees between Xiao Zhan’s parted legs.

His boyfriend’s hand came up to run through his hand, petting him the same way Yibo had done to him earlier.

“Ok, you’ve thoroughly confused me with what you’re going for here,” Xiao Zhan admitted with a small smile. “I’m not sure if I should be concerned or naked.”

Yibo’s empty hand slid up the man’s thighs, solid under his fingers, and reached out to take hold of Xiao Zhan’s smaller one.

“Zhan-ge, I adore you,” Yibo said, channeling confidence from that place inside his soul that always told him he could do anything. He flipped Xiao Zhan’s hand over, cradling it in his hand, before pressing the box into it and sandwiching his large hands around them. He stared into beautiful dark eyes. “Marry me.”

Yibo implored with his eyes, refusing to beg. Not for this. In the last year, he’d learned that their partnership was even more difficult to navigate than most. They were both shouldering an insane level of fame and popularity and carrying out a relationship entirely in secret, because if discovered it could endanger their careers.

This had to be something they both went into willingly. He wasn’t even very concerned with what the answer was. If it didn’t go well the first time, that just meant he needed to try harder the next time. At least now, Xiao Zhan would know he was truly serious about what he wanted for their future.

“Yibo…” Xiao Zhan said quietly, his eyes shuffling through a myriad of emotions from joy to concern to sadness.

Yibo cut him off before the answer he dreaded could be voiced. “Before you say anything — I don’t care how or where. Or even when. I’ll wait — until you’re ready. I’ll wait forever, Zhan-ge.”

Xiao Zhan’s eyes were glassy with tears, looking as if the world began and ended with Yibo and nothing else mattered. They both knew Yibo was serious, that he would wait as long as it took. Xiao Zhan had made him wait before, when he wasn’t sure about their relationship or his feelings and needed to work things out in his head.

Wang Yibo wasn’t a particularly patient man, but he could be — especially when the alternative, losing Xiao Zhan, was not an option he could live with.

“You’re just turning 23,” Xiao Zhan pointed out, and Yibo nearly sighed as he watched the man grasp at the same arguments from months before.

“Yes, and in the eyes of our great country, I’m old enough to know my own mind and provide for my partner,” Yibo said with a soft smile. “I thought you were a good socialist boy, Zhan-ge. I can’t believe you would question such a thing!”

He shook his head in mock disappointment, and Xiao Zhan struck out and smacked him on the arm on reflex with a watery laugh.

“Nevermind, maybe I don’t want to be your husband if you’re going to beat me!” Yibo joked.

“My husband…” Xiao Zhan whispered, his voice reverent, as if speaking the word out loud carried a power all its own. His gaze dropped to the box in his hand, still closed.

Yibo held his breath, waiting to see if it would be pushed back into his hands. In the back of his mind, he was expecting it, honestly. Xiao Zhan always needed time to process and think through things, and with everything that he’d been through professionally over the last few months, Yibo doubted he’d given much thought to the optional paths of his personal life.

He knew Yibo would stick by him and do whatever he could to help and support him. It’s what you did for the people you loved. There was nothing Yibo wouldn’t do for him, including facing the firing squad of his own fans if it came to it — not that Xiao Zhan would ever let him.

They always protected each other.

To his surprise, Xiao Zhan clicked open the box. He gasped in shock, his eyes darting from the ring to Yibo’s face and back again. “ _ Yibo…” _

At first glance, it was a fairly simple band. The width was not too thick, so it wouldn’t be bulky on Xiao Zhan’s thin fingers. But the appeal of it was truly in the details. Each of the diamonds inlaid in the band was shaped like a star — a feature Yibo was unlikely to forget, since he’d had no idea just how difficult it was to cut stones into that particular shape, and the cost had nearly made him choke. Etched into the dark titanium around the stars was a repetitive pattern, and when looking close the crown design was discernible. The pearlescent quality of the metal gave the etching a rainbow coloring as it reflected the light, giving the overall ring the effect of a night sky with sparkling stars, shot through with swirling colors like an aurora.

Yibo couldn’t help but be pretty damn proud of it, honestly. And the look on Xiao Zhan’s face was making the months of work all worth it.

“Yibo, it’s…” Xiao Zhan couldn’t seem to find words, running the pad of his index finger over the ring delicately. “Oh my god…  _ Where _ did you get this?”

“It’s one of a kind,” Yibo answered with a soft smile and a shrug. “Just like you.”

Xiao Zhan’s eyes shot wide. “What? You… you  _ made _ this?”

“Well, I helped design it,” Yibo admitted shyly. “If you don’t like it, we can —”

“NO! No, it’s beautiful. It’s perfect,” Xiao Zhan gushed, and a brilliant smile spread over his face. “You’re perfect.”

And then he jumped off the bed and dropped straight into Yibo’s lap, his long legs straddling Yibo’s thighs as he kissed him senseless, pressing their bodies close as if he could meld them together into one. Yibo responded with equal fervor, but he pulled back before they could get too carried away.

“Not that I’m not fine with what’s happening here,” Yibo said, dropping one more heated kiss to Xiao Zhan’s lips to indicate his meaning, “but where exactly does this leave us?”

It was a situation that didn’t feel safe to leave ambiguous, and Yibo  _ really _ wanted a clear response. He’d done a lot to get to this point, months of stress and work in fact. The least Xiao Zhan could do was give him an answer.

The older man took a deep breath, staring into his eyes. “Yes.”

Yibo’s breath caught in his throat, and he tried not to choke. “Really?”

“Let’s get married, BoBo.” Xiao Zhan was so happy, with his eyes crinkling into cute half moons, that Yibo couldn’t resist reeling him back in to kiss his gorgeous smiling face.

Slow, languid kisses took over for a few minutes, overwhelmed by the joyful buzz of knowing they truly belonged to each other. When the press of Xiao Zhan’s mouth and the insistence of his tongue became more purposeful, Yibo pulled away to take a breath, not allowing the man to push him down onto the floor just yet.

“There’s probably something else I should tell you,” Yibo said, running a hand appreciatively down Xiao Zhan’s chest and wishing the soft fabric wasn’t in the way.

Xiao Zhan’s eyes were blown, wild looking in the way that said he had very dirty,  _ very good _ ideas for what he planned to do in the next hour. His voice was dropped low and well past suggestive. “Can’t it wait until after I’ve gotten you naked and rode you so hard you forget your name?”

Straddling his waist, he ground against the hardness quickly making itself known in Yibo’s pants, making the younger man moan.

“Mnnn, probably, but I don’t want to forget,” Yibo said, enjoying the feel of Xiao Zhan’s hands running over him and already beginning to focus more on pleasure than practical things.

“What don’t you want to forget?” Xiao Zhan purred in his ear.

“I bought a house,” Yibo replied lightly. In retrospect, he probably should have realized that would be a larger discussion, but the blood wasn’t exactly flowing to his brain at that moment.

His grip on Xiao Zhan’s waist was the only thing that kept him close when the words registered and the older man pulled back to stare at him in shock.  _ “What?” _

“Well, I mean, I bought  _ us _ a house,” Yibo explained, though his brain was still not fully firing on all cylinders, and his dick was really wishing he’d waited to mention this.

Xiao Zhan’s mouth gaped open like a koi fish. “You  _ what?” _

“I haven’t signed the papers yet, so if you hate it, we can still find something else,” Yibo said hurriedly. He really didn’t understand what the big deal was. He was just buying something. He bought a lot of things. The only difference between a house and a new skateboard was the number of zeros at the end.

Besides, he’d been working and saving for years — it was about time he invested in his future.

In their future. Together.

“Yibo… A house? That’s a big deal!” Xiao Zhan had moved on to sputtering, his hands clutching onto Yibo’s shoulders as if he wasn’t sure whether to shake him or hold on to keep himself grounded.

“Well, it’s not like I could go to your parents without a  _ plan, _ Zhan-ge,” Yibo said, narrowly resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

“My parents?!” Xiao Zhan said in disbelief. He swayed a bit in Yibo’s arms.

“Oh fuck, you’re not going to faint, are you?”

Xiao Zhan’s eyes were a little unfocused, his breathing accelerating into short bursts. “Maybe?”

“Shit,  _ baobao. _ Let’s get off the floor and you lay on the bed, ok?” Yibo said as he stood and pulled Xiao Zhan up along with him. He sat the ring box on the side table and helped Xiao Zhan settle into a more comfortable position on the mattress where he couldn’t fall over and hurt himself. The last time Yibo had seen the man so pale was on a set two years ago when they’d both nearly gotten heat stroke. He tried to joke to lighten the mood and help Xiao Zhan relax. “You’re not allowed to faint. That’s my job. I’m the delicate one, remember?”

Of the two, Yibo was always the one more likely to have some minor ailment or another. Xiao Zhan often teased that it was because he was such a delicate flower, a wicked jab to the nickname Yibo had gotten when he’d debuted as a pale, blond teen. Meanwhile, Xiao Zhan had the constitution of a thoroughbred, which he claimed had been forged in the fires of Sichuan cuisine during his youth.

“I’m not going to  _ faint, _ Bo-ge,” Xiao Zhan huffed with a petulant tone. “God.”

Yibo laid down next to him. “Then stop freaking out already.”

Xiao Zhan rolled over to stare at him. “Did you really talk to my parents?” Yibo nodded. “So they know about… all this? And they’re ok with it?”

“Of course!” Yibo answered with maybe a little too much confidence to be completely believable. “You know your mom loves me.”

_ Now _ she loved him. It had taken Xiao Zhan’s parents a while to accept them as a couple, but ironically what had helped them come around was their CP fan group, which formed once  _ Chen Qing Ling _ took off and everything blew up into a phenomenon. Seeing how many people supported their relationship — even if they didn’t actually know it was real — gave his parents confidence that they would be able to make it work together.

Of course, when Yibo talked with them about a very permanent commitment, they’d had a lot of questions. About a residence more accessible to Chongqing, their work schedules, and what Yibo planned to do if Xiao Zhan’s career was permanently damaged from the trouble earlier in the year. He’d skated through the interrogation honestly and relatively unscathed, because the truth was he’d do whatever he could to take care of Xiao Zhan and make him happy. He’d walk through fire if Xiao Zhan needed him to.

And given their professions, there was always the possibility of a major explosion and a blaze that could destroy them.

His talk with the in-laws hadn’t been that bad, really. Although he was pretty sure at some point he’d promised Xiao Zhan’s mom grandchildren, and Yibo wasn’t entirely sure how the logistics of  _ that _ were going to work out. But he’d heard people did it, and he had faith in the wonders of science.

They would cross that bridge later.  _ Much _ later. Like maybe when Xiao Zhan was forty.

Or he was.

“My beautiful boy,” Xiao Zhan said as he caressed Yibo’s cheek with his fingers. His voice was quiet with awe. “I get to keep you.”

“No, Zhan-ge,” Yibo corrected, “we’re going to keep each other.”

He pulled Xiao Zhan close, capturing his lips and quickly deepening the kiss to pick up where they’d left off earlier. It was easy to get lost in the warmth of their love, reveling in their shared happiness and the rare opportunity to have their partner in their arms.

Tomorrow, Yibo would be back to work on set, and Xiao Zhan would be busy fielding phone calls and dealing with business for his studio. But tonight, they still had hours to spend with each other, and the promise of a long future cemented between them.

**Author's Note:**

> This was so fun to write, because I can't help making these two totally sweet for each other in just about everything!
> 
> If you enjoyed it, please leave me some candies -- kudos and comments!!
> 
> You can generally find me thirsting about the boys on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/bjyxobsessed) as well, if you're interested.


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